Bhutan Leverages PEFA to Leap Forward with its PFM Reforms

Posted by Sonam Tobgyel^[1]

Bhutan has a very strong commitment to Good Governance which is one of the four pillars of the country’s Gross National Happiness (GNH) Index and one of the nine domains of the same index. Improving governance and accountability is one of the main priorities of the Royal Government of Bhutan (RGoB) and strengthening PFM is a key element of good governance. To improve PFM, the RGoB has used the Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA) Assessment tool, which involves evidence-based measurements of a country’s PFM system to provide a scorecard of performance against various indicators and prepare a well-sequenced reform strategy. Bhutan had undertaken various reforms even before the first PEFA Assessment was carried out. However, it was only after the PEFA Assessments of 2010 and 2016 that the country was able to leap forward with a more structured and sequenced reform strategy which has already had a marked impact on the country’s fiscal performance.

Sub-Saharan Africa Course on Gender Budgeting

Posted by Virginia Alonso Albarran, Laura Gores, Monique Newiak, and Vincent Tang^[1]

The IMF’s Fiscal Affairs Department (FAD) and African Department (AFR), in collaboration with the Africa Training Institute (ATI) organized a five-day remote course on Gender Budgeting for 65 government officials across 25 countries from Sub-Saharan Africa in January 2021.^[2]

Australia’s New Online Transparency Portal

Posted by Gemma Preston^[1]

A new online platform known as transparency.gov.au has greatly improved access to government data in Australia. The tool, developed by the Australian Department of Finance, aims to provides a one-stop-shop for planning and performance information for all Australian government entities at the central level, including public financial and non-financial corporations. The Portal, which has been piloted since 2017-18, aims to become the single definitive source of corporate information, providing easy access to the Parliament and the public.

Using Data Analytics to Enhance Cash Management

Posted by Guillermo Tello ^[1]

Financial management information systems (FMIS) put increasingly vast amounts of financial information at the fingertips of members of state treasuries, enabling them to analyze budget execution trends and to track the accuracy of cash flow projections.

Reforming Budget Execution and Cash Management in the Middle East and North Africa

Posted by Jacques Charaoui and Merle Wilkinson^[1]

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, most countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region face decreasing revenues and increasing expenditure. Some governments are also experiencing constrained access to financial markets as well as challenges in raising cash to finance crisis-related emergency spending. All these factors put pressure on governments’ treasury and cash management operations. They necessitate a multipronged approach to cash management that provides enough liquidity to satisfy the government’s payment obligations while maintaining adequate cash balances at all times.